a resident of huddle, texas, first lieutenant kyle g. west bravely served in support of operation iraqi freedom with the united states army's sixth squadron, ninth cavalry rentalment, third brigade combat team out of fort hood, texas. on memorial day, may 28, 2007, first lieutenant west and four fellow members of his unit were killed in iraq when their bradley fighting vehicle was struck by an improvised explosive device. the soldiers had been out on a rescue mission in support of comrades who had been downed in a helicopter. after graduating in 2001 from huddle high school in texas, first lieutenant west attended blin college and subsequently received a degree in business management from steven f. austin state university in 2005. in pursuit of his lifelong dream to serve in the united states military, first lieutenant west joined the rotc program at steven f. austin as a junior and eventually rose to sergeant and the taction national guard out of texas. included among kyle's national guard duties were assistanting in the columbia shuttl

the gentleman from texas is recognized. mr. smith: mr. speaker, i yield four minutes to the gentleman from texas, mr. gohmert, a member of the impeachment task force and former district judge from texas. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from texas is recognized for four minutes. mr. gohmert: thank you, mr. speaker. and i also want to thank the leadership and the very responsible conduct of the chairman of the task force, adam schiff, doing an exemplary job and bringing it to head as quickly as humanly can be done. and to chairman conyers and to ranking member smith. we have worked together on this because it is a very serious matter when our federal courts are held in less than high esteem. we have a federal judge, as already been mentioned, pled guilty to obstruction of! he admitted to nonconsensual sexual acts. we have the transcript from the federal court hearings in which there are actual specificity of misrepresentations. we also could take judicial notice of his orders and opinions that he wrote himself. it's very clear that a

kent, judge of the united states district court for the southern district of texas. the presiding officer: the managers on the part of the house will be received and assigned their seats. the presiding officer: the sergeant at arms will make the proclamation. sergeant at arms: hear ye! hear ye! hear ye! all persons are commanded to keep silent, on pain of imprisonment, while the house of representatives is exhibiting to the senate of the united states articles of impeachment against samuel b. kent, judge of the united states district court for the southern district of texas. the presiding officer: the managers on the part of the house will proceed. mr. schiff: mr. president, the managers on the part of the house of representatives are here present and ready to present the articles of impeachment which have been preferred by the house of representatives against samuel b. kent, judge of the united states district court for the southern district of texas. the house adopted the following resolution, which with the permission of the president of the senate i will read: h.

eddie bernice johnson of texas. the chair: the gentlelady from texas, ms. johnson, and a member opposed will each control five minutes. the chair recognizes the gentlelady from texas. ms. johnson: thank you. let me begin by thanking the chairman and congresswoman ros-lehtinen for all of their hard work and dedication to improving the lives around the world. my amendment affirms that the use of child soldiers is unacceptable. it is a violation of human rights and the prevex and elimination of child soldiers should be a foreign policy goal of the united states. around the world children have been recruited by armed forces and exploited as soldiers. amnesty international estimates 250,000 children under the age of 18 are thought to be currently fighting in conflicts around the world and hundreds of thousands are members of armed forces who could be sent into conflict any time. the use of children as soldiers has been universally condemned as horrible and unacceptable. yet over the last 10 years hundreds of thousands of children have fought and died in conflict

the gentleman from texas is recognized. mr. smith: i yield five minutes to the gentleman from wisconsin, mr. sensenbrenner a member of the impeachment task force and former member of the judiciary committee. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. sensenbrenner: i would like to demand in a division of the question so as to result in a accept rote -- a separate vote on the articles of impeachment. the speaker pro tempore: the article will be divided. mr. sensenbrenner: the overwhelming support is weighted in evidence against samuel b. kent. a federal grand jury indicted judge kent on three counts of inappropriate sexual conduct and one count of obstruction justice. he pleaded guilty to obstruction of justice pursuant to a plea agreement. as part of the plea agreement, the government agreed to dismiss the remaining five counts at sentencing. at that time, i called on judge kent to resign, saying i would introduce articles of impeachment upon his sentencing in may if he did not resign. on may 11, 2009, judge kent

the gentleman from texas. mr. gohmert: thank you, mr. speaker. i yield myself such time as i may consume. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. gohmert: i comments i made previously were with regard to this bill as amended, so i would ask that the record so reflect and since a lot of people have difficulty hearing me speak very long because the accent, i won't repeat those comments and would yield back the balance of my time the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from texas yields back his time. the gentleman from tennessee. mr. cohen: thank you, mr. speaker, i appreciate the gentleman from texas and i understand him clearly and well. some people don't understand us as well as we understand each other. and i would like to also comment that the previous remarks that i made be incorporated by reference onto this bill and with such i would yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. will the house suspend the rules. those in favor

hensarling of texas. the chair: pursuant to house resolution 552, the gentleman from texas and a member opposed will each control five minutes. the chair recognizes the gentleman from texas but would first bring the house tord to order. the gentleman deserves to be heard on his amendment. the gentleman from texas is recognized for five minutes. mr. hensarling: thank you, mr. chairman. never in the history of congress have so few voted so fast to spend so much and indebt so many. the democrats are in a program to spend more money than we have seen in the history of this institution and apparently they want very few speed bumps along the road to bankrupting america. thus last night, almost 3/4 of the republican amendments that would reform, improve government programs, make them more efficient, save the american taxpayer money, were ruled out of order, but i suppose in a modicum of respect for the democrat process a handful of amendments were made in order, i suppose i'm happy mine was one of them. recently

hensarling of texas. the chair: the gentleman from texas and a member opposed will each control five minutes. the chair recognizes the gentleman from texas. mr. hensarling: thank you, mr. chairman. this is an amendment that would strike an earmark in the bill for the art center of the grand prarie in stutgardt, arkansas. i'm not a big fan of earmarks. it's not to say all earmarks are bad. the gentleman from texas to my left here has proposed several very worth while earmarks. but, mr. speaker, we aren't living in normal times. we are in severe economic stress in our nation today. and as i look at what has happened in the united states congress, what have i observed, is that in the history of congress, never have so few voted so fast to indebt so many. already on top of a staggering, staggering national debt, we have seen a $700 billion bailout program that continues today, a $1.13 trillion government stimulus bill. does nothing to help our economy. $400 billion omnibus bill, choke full of even more earmar

the gentleman from texas. mr. green: mr. speaker, i'd like to yield myself as much time as i consume to thank the gentlelady for the outstanding work she's done on this piece of legislation. she's worked tirelessly to bring it to the floor and i compliment the lady along with senator hutchinson for the outstanding job she has done as well. i encourage my colleagues to support this legislation and i continue to reserve. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman continues to reserve. the gentlewoman from florida. ms. ros-lehtinen: thank you, mr. speaker. i'd like to yield five minutes to the gentleman from texas, mr. conaway, who's district covers -- whose district covers sweet water, texas, which is home to the wasp. this is where they train and where their museum is. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from texas is recognized for five minutes. mr. conaway: thank you, mr. speaker, and i thank the gentlelady forgiving me some time to speak. it's my great pleasure to rise it to recognize the invaluable service b

madam speaker, texas leads this country in jobs, and people are coming to texas from all over the united states just to have jobs. why would we go and diminish the opportunities for people to find those jobs that were available to help their families? madam speaker, families all over texas are already hurting, and with all the other troubles plaguing the economy, they simply cannot afford the additional and completely avoidable economic asexual assault that the new democrat majority is placing on the american people. perhaps worst of all, madam speaker, the economic damage created by this legislation actually favors foreign companies over american ones. china, the number one emitter of greenhouse gases, and india who is said to expand its emissions, will not be required to modify their behavior at all. that means that this new democrat majority is taking the astonishing position of asking american small businesses and consumers to carry the global load for the world's carbon consumption. because, as everyone understands, if only americans tax their manufacturing and productions then only

poe of texas. mr. poe of texas. mr. poe: mr. speaker, noble sacrifice dominates the character of a man so willing willly dedicated in his life for others. there are none who understand that any better today than the men and women in our u.s. military. they personify the very he essence of what it means to be an american. today under the morning sky at arlington cemetery, myself and other members of congress, rob witman from virginia, jo bonner from alabama and senator sessions from alabama, joined several other hundred members of family and friends as a 21-gun salute and "taps" was played for the united states air force lieutenant clon, mark e. straten ii. the somber silence of the gravesites were broken with this tribute. colonel straten was trained as a navigator on an air force k.c. 135. in his honor, one of thighs massive aircraft flew low and slow over arlington cemetery, over the flag-draped coffin of one of air force's finest. i gave his life helping the afghan people to know dignity of a life lived in freedom. he was ass

the gentleman from texas. mr. barton: i have another parliamentary inquiry. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman will state his parliamentary inquiry. mr. barton: is there a rule of the house that requires a copy of the pending legislation to be present in or near the body? the speaker pro tempore: the chair is not aware of such a rule. mr. barton: beg your pardon? the speaker pro tempore: the chair is not aware of such a rule. mr. barton: so you are not aware of one? the speaker pro tempore: not aware of one. mr. barton: i appreciate the honest answer. i yield one minute to the gentleman from pennsylvania, mr. dent, one minute. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from pennsylvania is recognized for one minute. mr. dent: thank you, madam speaker. i rise in strong opposition to this national energy tax. this bill is all cost, no benefit. i want to read some exexperts from a letter that was sent from the pennsylvania public utility commission. this bill will have a profound adverse impact on the commonwealth of

the gentleman from texas. mr. sessions: thank you, madam speaker. at this time i yield three minutes to the gentleman from the republican caucus, mr. pence. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from indiana is recognized for three minutes. mr. pence: i ask unanimous consent to revise and extend my remarks. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, so ordered. mr. pence: madam speaker, this is a difficult time in the life of our nation. in the life of our nation's economy and that of families and small businesses and family farms. remarkably today with an embarrassingly brief amount of debate and discussion and amendment, the democratic majority is poised to bring to the floor of the congress what amounts to the largest tax increase in american history. under the guise of climate change legislation. now, there's a lot of debate about what this bill will cost the average american household, from hundreds of dollars to thousands of dollars, but there actually is no debate over the fact that this legislation will

kent, judge of the united states district court for the southern district of texas.he house adopted the following resolution which with the permission of the president of the senate i will read. v u.s. june 19, 2009 that mrs. schiff, mr. johnson of georgia mr. goodlatte and mr. sensenbrenner are appointed managers on the point of the house to conduct the impeachment of samuel b. kent, a judge of the united states district court for the southern district of texas that a message be sent to the senate to inform theÑw sena of these appointments and that the managers on the x!p of the house may exhibit the articles of impeachment to the senate and take all other actions necessary in connection to preparation 4 and conduct of the trial, which may include the following. one, employing legal, clerical and other necessary assistance and encouraging such other expenses as may be necessary to be paid from amounts available to the committee on the judiciary under house resolution 279, 111 congress agreed to march 31, 2009, or any other applicable expense resolution on vouchers a

poe of texas. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from texas is recognized for one minute. mr. poe: thank you, madam speaker. i appreciate the gentleman for yielding. i represent southeast texas, the energy capital of the united states. 20% of the refineries in this country that help all these folks all over the fruited plain with energy i represent them. this week alone we've had 86 people call and say vote for this bill. we've had 1,578 people in my district call and say, vote no against this bill. almost 20 times. i'm an advocate for those people in southeast texas. they believe, as i believe, we're going to close america's energy with this bill. the c.b.o. and the e.p.a. says there's not going to be much difference in the climate if we pass this deal. bummer. it's not even going to work. and it's more important to realize this bill is about control, government control of our lives, our businesses and everything we do. washington, d.c.'s going to dictate how we live and how we shall live and how our businesses will live and it's all bad because d.c. is in control and not the

sessions of texas. the chair: pursuant to house resolution 522, the gentleman from texas, mr. sessions, and a member opposed, each will control five minutes. the chair recognizes the gentleman from texas. mr. sessions: thank you, mr. chairman. mr. chairman, i rise today in support of my amendment to the foreign relations re-authorization act. my amendment would affirm the united states complete support for israel's absolute right to defend itself from imminent or military nuclear threat from iran, terrorist organizations or nations that harbor them. israel is currently being threatened on three fronts, hamas in the south, hezbollah in the north, and from iran which provides financial and material support to both these terrorist organizations. this threat culminated on may 20 when iran successfully tested a surface-to-surface missile with a range of 1,500 miles. iranian leaders continue to express their hatred for israel and refuse to acknowledge its right of existence. their incendiary words and actions are a threat to israel and the entire region. no nation should be subjecte

the gentleman from texas. mr. green: i close by urging my colleagues to support this piece of legislation. and to please consider the fact that our veterans have been there for us. this is an opportunity for us to be there for them. i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the question is will the house suspend the rules and pass h.r. 403. so many as are in favor say aye. those opposed, no. in the opinion of the chair, 2/3 of those voting having responded in the affirmative, the rules are suspended, the bill is passed -- the gentleman from texas. mr. green: mr. speaker, i object to the vote on the grounds a quorum is not present and make a point of order a quorum is not present. the speaker pro tempore: pursuant to clause 8 of rule 20 and the chair's prior announcement, further proceedings on this motion will be postponed. for what purpose does the gentleman from texas rise? mr. green: mr. speaker, i move to have the house suspend the rules and pass the bill, senate bill 614. the speaker pro t

the gentleman from texas. mr. hensarling: thank you, mr. chairman. contrary to the gentlelady from maine, i did not come here quite angry, but i do come here disappointed. i'm sure her motives are good and pure, but she has brought to us an earmark that takes $200 ,000 away in order to benefit people in her congressional district. maybe she doesn't understand what $200,000 means to the working families of the 5th congressional district of texas and ultimately maybe she doesn't understand why 46 cents on the dollar, borrowing it from the chinese, something that majority leader steny hoyer once described in increasing the federal deficit, fiscal child abuse. we must have priorities. we must reject this earmark. and i yield back the balance of my time. the chair: all time having expired, the question is on the amendment offered by the gentleman from texas. those in favor say aye. those opposed, no. the noes have it. the amendment is not agreed to. the gentleman from texas. mr. hensarling: i request a recorded vote. the chair: pursuant to clause 6, rule

his wife, by the way, attended texas college in tyler, texas, where she is on the board of directors and it has been one of the highlights of my life to get to meet mr. aaron on more than one occasion. it's heartbreaking, heart rending to hear some of the hell on earth he was put through simply because of race. yet he never wavered. he continued to give everything he had to those tasks put before him. people remember the home run record, but many do not realize he had over 300 bush over .300 batting average, .305 lifetime. it was incredible. i once asked him, for someone who was a home run hitter to hit over .300, most players only dream of hit .300. how did you do that? was there some secret ability you had? and in his typical, humble style, mr. aaron said, i was a good guest hitter. typical hank aaron. humility completely. for such an extraordinarily gifted man who used his talents, developed them and we all know he didn't get where he was without working, persevering, and the heartbreaking part, the assaults, verbally and in other ways, the threats that the man endured simply beca

when i was a child approximately four or five years of age, i was living in texas. mexia, texas. my father, born in denmark, served in the u.s. army. he was in his 40's and went sent overseas. he was the finance officer at a p.o.w. camp in mexia, texas. it's a town of about 7,500 people. apparently then and now, i asked somebody about it just recently there, were 4,000 nazi troops in a p.o.w. campp there. they were kept there. they were not necessarily terrorists. we need to take special precautions. but in the pursuance of the policies enunciated by the president of the united states, when he ran for office, when he was substantially elected by the american people, he told them exactly what he thought ought to be done. he is pursuing what he said to the american people he would do. he is doing in my opinion in a thoughtful way that will protect the american public and will bring to justice those who have committed international crimes. and i think that is something that we are trying to work through. i want to reiterate the gentleman has now mentioned so many times that we have

the gentleman from texas. mr. barton: i yield two minutes to the distinguished gentleman of the committee, a member of the energy solutions group and a tireless worker on behalf of energy solutions for america, mr. shimkus of illinois. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized for two minutes. mr. shimkus: thank you, madam speaker, i ask unanimous consent to revise and extend. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, so ordered. mr. shimkus: thank you, madam speaker. this bill is a disaster. let me explain who is opposed. rural america is opposed to this bill. the manufacturing sector is opposed to this bill. utilities are opposed to this bill. the transportation sector are opposed to this bill. why? because they believe democrats. they believe john dingell when he says nobody in this country realizes that a cap and trade is a tax. and it's a very big one. they believe barack obama when he said, under my plan a cap and trade system, electricity costs would necessarily skyrocket. what's the result? th

doggett of texas. pursuant to the speaker's announced policy of january 6, 2009, the gentleman from texas, mr. gohmert, is recognized for 60 minutes as the designee of the minority leader. mr. gohmert: thank you, mr. speaker. i appreciate the time. this is a trying time and i appreciate my friend from texas belief and hope in the future. i just have read enough of of this bill and know enough to understand about the consequences. this isn't the whole bill. this is 2/3 of it. the other 300 pages they allowed me to borrow a copy briefly earlier today during debate, right before the debate closed, but this is about 2/3 of it. we are having a job fair in longview, texas monday. that arose when i met with a bunch of my constituents, most all were african-americans, a month or so ago who had lost jobs because jobs were being moved overseas. energy was too costly here. the corporate tax is twice as much here as -- over twice as much as what it is in china. and i have been hearing from other manufacturers that

for the record, here is texas medical association. liability costs have defined 27% since 2003, they have saved $322 million per year by texas physicians in insurance costs since they put the cap on. i don't know what study -- i would love to see the studies you're quoting and see if they actually include the three states now that truly have caps. if you blend those three states with everybody else, i'm sure you're not going to see any effect. but if you look at the three states that do have caps, you will see an effect. that's for the record. that's straight from the texas medical association. >> mr. chairman? >> yes. senator whitehouse? >> even if it were efficacious, i still think that it is completely wrong because it puts 100% of the cost of this social problem on the woman who's coming home from the hospital with a disabled baby who she's going to have to take care of for the rest of her life, with the woman who is coming home from the hospital with a disfiguring injury that she will carry for the rest of her life, the woman com

poe of texas. the chair: pursuant to house resolution 573, the gentleman from texas, mr. poe, and a member opposed will each control five minutes. the chair recognizes the gentleman from texas. mr. poe: the amendment i'm offering today section to add additional funding to the highly successful and widely supported national predisaster mitigation fund. at a time of deficits and government spending, this is good for the taxpayer. according to a study first released in 2005, the natural hazard mitigation saved an independent study to assess the future savings from mitigation activities performed by the group called the multihazard mitigation council stated for every dollar spent omit gation, $3 to $4 are saved. the congressional budget office issued its cost savings and confirmed the savings derived from the program. this amendment that i'm offering could save anywhere from $96 million to $128 million in future disaster costs and communities such as i represent along the gulf coast of texas, predisaster mitigation is essential in weathering future devastating hurricanes whic

dove a resident of athens texas passed away last month. he was a loving husband of 58 years to jo ann. he was proud father to daughter cynthia and mary lou. he was a devoted grandfather of cole, kyle, michelle, and great grandfather of kristen, preston, and daniel. finally, madam speaker, he was my dear friend. he was born in 1929 in texas and graduated from luisa high school. he proudly defended our nation in the korean war by serving in the united states army. when his service ended dove began what became a legacy of leadership in our free enterprise system and service to his community. he returned to work and eventually owned his own clothing business. he gave back to his small west texas community by shaping the live of younger men as the order of de malay dad and long time boy scout leader. he then moved to my hometown of dallas, texas, where he began a long career and corporate group insurance management. after that he set his sights heward on the pine trees and lakes of east texas and began a fire and casualty insurance business in

the gentleman from texas is recognized.smith smith i yield five minutes to the the gentleman from virginia, mr. goodlatte, who is a rim of the impeachment task force. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from virginia is recognized for five minutes. mr. goodlatte: i thank the gentleman for yielding. mr. speaker, it's a rare occasion when the house of representatives must vote on articles of impeachment against a federal judge. indeed, the last time this occurred was 20 years ago. however, when evidence emerges that an individual is abusing his judicial office for his own advantage, the integrity of the judicial system becomes compromised and the house of representatives has the duty to investigate the matter and take the appropriate actions to end the abuse and restore confidence in the judicial system. it is also rare for the members of the house judiciary committee to agree on anything. however, the committee voted unanimously last week to report out house resolution 520, which contains the four articles of impeachment

, i think, demonstrated that texas, we always keep texas first in our minds regardless of party and i want to thank the chairman and our ranking member for putting together a bill that focuses on national security and includes the interests of all members from all parts of the country. the chair: the gentleman from north carolina. >> i would like to yield two minutes to one of our members from florida, ms. kosmas. the chair: the gentlewoman is recognized. ms. kosmas: this bill also provides important funding for our first responders on the front line of emergencies in our state and local grants, including the metropolitan system. i would like to thank the chairman for including my amendment for providing funding in the manager's amendment. increasing funding over fiscal year 2009 will help ensure that high threat, highly populated communities such as the orlando metropolitan area will be better able to respond when faced with emergencies whether it's a terrorist attack, an epidemic decide outbreak or a natural disaster. the mmrs program assists 24 highly populated jurisdictions across

nor is the texas -- the houston ship channel. these are fiscally conservative requests. i don't think you'll find any member of congress with higher fiscally conservative standards i odo. i think the request is appropriate. it's absolutely necessary for an area that got hammered by the hurricane. i urge defeat of the amendment. the chair: the gentleman's time has expired. members are reminded to address their comments to the chair. mr. flake: may i ask the time remaining. the chair: the gentleman has two minutes. the chair: members are reminded to address their remarks to the chair. mr. culberson: every piece of legislation directs which parts of arizona do you have? you've got -- mr. flake: the east valley. mr. culberson:e let's say congress passes a piece of legislation to designate funding for kidd peak observatory. erbil congress passes designates funding. we have to be fiscally responsible -- the chair: the gentleman's time has expired. the gentleman from arizona. mr. flake: i'm a slow learner. let me remind the gentleman, this district, harris county, received $1 m

the gentleman from texas. mr. olson: i see no one on my side of the aisle requesting time so i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. the gentleman from washington. mr. baird: with no other he speakers i'll yield back the balance of my time and urge passage of this important -- with no other speakers, i'll yield back the balance of my time and urge passage of this important legislation. the speaker pro tempore: those in favor say aye. those opposed, no. in the opinion of the chair, 2/3 having responded in the affirmative, the rules are -- the gentleman from georgia is recognized. mr. broun: i reqst the yeas and nays. the speaker pro tempore: the yeas and nays are requested. all those in favor of taking this vote by the yeas and nays will rise and remain standing until counted. a sufficient number having arisen, the yeas and nays are ordered. pursuant to clause 8 of rule 20 and the chair's prior announcement, further proceedings on this motion

so the texas t-bone may be your best shot. if they can build a texas t-bone and prove that it works, then how tough is it to take it, i don't know if el paso is on. >> el paso is not. el paso is one of our strongest supporters of the high-speed rail, not that they expect to see the 900 miles from houston to el paso built as a high-speed rail. it's the line from el paso to albuquerque to denver that you talk about, and they see that as a real possibility and they see the proof in the system on the t-bone that the houston to dallas would be the next debt to provide the capacity to move forward and build the el paso route to albuquerque and onto other points in the west. >> one of the things that's been fascinating in new mexico, governor richardson stepped up and did commuter rail, and there were a lot of doubts. an earlier governor had talked about doing it and was ridiculed by the press, but he stepped up and did it. and on time, on schedule. and ended up, it's been going about nine months now. it's past the 2 millionth passen

the honorable judge robert exles, chairman of the texas -- eccles chairman of the texas high speed corporation, ms. susan plining, and tom skanke, commissioner of the revenue study commission, president and c.e.o. of the skancke company and we thank you all for being here and governor rendell if you would, please take five minutes to summarize, try to meet the target, if we can. >> mr. chairman, you forgot mr. boardman. >> i looked at you and -- fire that person. >> i've only been here six months. >> that's what happens, take advantage of relationships. i know, we're glad to have you, joe, you do a great job at amtrak, we're proud of you, i'm sorry, i thank you governor for the reminder. we'll start you off at a fresh five-minute clock. >> mr. chairman, ranking member, it's a pleasure to be here. i think this is a tremendous opportunity for the country and i would -- i would analogize it to the opportunity we had when we built the federal highway city. i come here today wearing three hats, governor of pennsylvania, chairman of the governors association and co-chair of building america's future

poe of texas. the chair: recorded vote has been requested. those in favor of the request for recorded vote will rise and be counted. a sufficient number having arisen, a recorded vote is ordered. members will record their votes by electronic device. this will be a two-minute vote. [captioning made possible by the national captioning institute, inc., in cooperation with the united states house of representatives. any use of the closed-captioned coverage of the house proceedings for political or commercial purposes is expressly prohibited by the u.s. house of representatives.] the chair: the nays are 230. the amendment is not agreed to. the unfinished business is the request for recorded vote on amendment number 4 printed in part b of house report 111-183, offered by the gentleman from iowa, mr. king, on which further proceedings were postponed and on which the noes prevailed by voice vote. the clerk will redesignate the amendment. the clerk: part b amendment number 4, printed in house report number 111-183, offered by mr. king of of iowa. the

the chair: the gentleman from texas. mr. neugebauer: the chairman brings up points that we are gutting this bill. in fact, we're not gutting this bill. we're just trying to give the american taxpayers some of their money back, $2.7 billion. unfortunately, it was $2.7 billion we didn't have. if he has other areas that would be better served by cutting those program, i would love to have that discussion with him. but the bottom line is, i was on the airplane coming back to washington, i had two people come up and say, congressman, y'all have got to stop this spending. we can't afford it. you know who even gets that more than anybody, i have a 10-year-old grandson nathan, i gave him a gift card not long ago he and i went to the store he went to the store and gathered up a lot of thing he is thought would be something he'd like to have. when he got to the counter he realized he had more items in his basket than he had money on his gift card he didn't turn to his granddaddy and say, can you spot me a little extra, he took the ite

for what purpose does the gentleman from texas rise? mr. poe: i wish to claim mr. burton's time to speak out of order the speaker pro tempore: without objection. mr. poe: madam speaker, the state of texas lost a warrior this month in the forward operating base in afghanistan. a remote and december late place in the middle of the badlands in this war zone. army specialist garrett died on june 9, 2009 from injuries he suffered in afghanistan. he was just 20 years of age. this is a photograph right here, madam speaker of specialist grimmell. he is the 28th warrior to die in afghanistan with connections to my district in texas. he was a young man who personified the best qualities of the young people in america today. born in texas, jarrett was living the life he always made to map plans to live, that being a life filled with achievement and adventure that he desired. he was a patriot and joined the army his junior year in high school and completed basic training before graduating with honors from high school. he was a member of the swim te

king: i thank the gentleman from texas for yielding. you have raised a scenario here that disturbs me a great deal about what happens about the indecision when you don't trust your intelligence community because of an allegations that's made by the person third in line by the president of the united states. this is the person third in line for president of the united states. the indecision that could come because of the doubt that's been planted. let me submit another way that this hurts america's security. beyond this point that you have made, judge, about the indecision

the most recently famous example was in texas, where in 2003, the texas legislature took the congressional redistricting map and a read-predicted the state even though they had a valid plan in state -- and the re redistricted the state. if we allow legislators and politicians after every election to look over the results and then decide this incumbent looks like their district is trending so they may have a problem in the next election, let's move some bad population out and did population in. then we can afford the voters will. >>host: you mentioned to texas where it benefited republicans, but have states been gerrymandered to benefit democrats? >> it is a bipartisan effort. both sides do it. both sides maximize their political power to the extent they can within a state. because congress has a balance roughly of democrats and republicans even the democrats are in control now, redistricting is a process that allows a party to pick up seats for about five elections. if you can redistrict in such a way in a state and you control the governor's chair senate and house, you can -- right after

the gentleman from texas. mr. barton: i'd like to yield one minute to the distinguished senior member of the committee from the great state of georgia, mr. deal. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized for one minute. mr. deal: i thank the gentleman for yielding. there are many issues that need to be discussed. i rise in opposition to this leg. one topic is that of jobs. we're told we're going to gain jobs. by most reasonable estimates, we're going to lose jobs. the best example of that is to look at what happened in spain. spain has traveled this path of renewables and green energy. their estimate is that for every job they gained they lost over two. i don't consider that to be the direction that our country needs to go, especially in these difficult economic times. the second thing that needs to be said is that there is a disparity being created in the renewable portfolio requirements. for portions of the cubtry such as georgia and the southeast in georgia, -- in general we don't have the volume of

the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from texas. mr. barton: i yield myself 15 seconds to explain what they just said. what they said is you've got something in the bill we don't agree with, but we're going to let you put it in the bill with the understanding that we'll take it out later on. i want to yield two minutes to the distinguished member of the committee, mr. waled run of oregon. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized for two minutes. mr. walden: i want to talk about a couple of things here, process, cost, and language. this is the 309 pages printed at 1:34 in the morning and submitted to the rules committee sometime around 2:49 this morning. nobody, it's impossible, i can't imagine anybody has read this i just discovered they've changed the hide roe language so hide roe, -- hydco, they used to -- hydro, they used to say it counted, now they chave changed it. it's page after page of -- of technical changes with major impact. nine committees this was referred to, only one was allowed to have a markup. a lot of this

the most famous example was in texas where in 2003 the texas legislature took the congressional redistricting map and re-redistricted the state even though the head of della plan in place. it goes back to the original question about why americans for redistricting reform was crude. if we allow legislators and politicians every election to look over the results and say that this income of looks like their district is trending and may have problems in the next election, so let's move some bad population out and the the proposition income of the weekend for the will of the voters. host: you mentioned it texas. to the benefits of republicans. are there states where the streets have jerrymandered for democrats? guest: it is a bipartisan effort. both sides to it. both sides maximize their political power to the extent they can within a state. because congress has a balance roughly of democrats and republicans, even the democrats control the house will, redistricting is essentially a process that allows a party to pick up seats for five elections. if you can redistrict in such a way in a state it un

the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from texas. mr. sessions: thank you, madam speaker. i want to thank my friend from california for yielding this time to me to discuss the proposed rule consideration for the federal employees paid parental leave act of 2009. and i yield myself such time as i may consume. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. sessions: thank you, madam speaker. i have heard a lot of arguments here on the floor of house of representatives and i'm not a psychologist, but i would tend to bet that probably more than the first 12 weeks of a child's life is very important to their development. and i'm kind of surprised that we don't have evidence today that says the first 14, 13, 16 years of a child's life is really the most important point. and maybe we just ought to let employees take 16 years off, since that's the defining moment. there is no reality with this about the first 12 weeks of a child's life. it's about probably the first 14 or 15 years. and as a parent, i can tell you, i remember the first

frank that is from a water taxi, texas. he is a fourth generation gm dealer and i think a second generation the jeep dealer. his grandfather started selling chevrolet in texas in 1926. he made it to the great depression, he made it his family -- his family minute through world war ii when you have quotas, they made it to the boom years of the '50s, they made it through the gas rationing of the '70s. boom or bust and there has been blank and tackler selling cars in texas for over 80 years and then bang he got letters on i think back. >> terminating his contract immediately or within three weeks ended gm say they weren't going to renew him. now, when the gm and chrysler people and the managers were in my office yesterday there were very sincere. they have their flip charts and they have their notebooks and they could look up and show me if i wanted to see the performance or nonperformance of all the dealers in my district. but that doesn't touch on the human story. and again, carlyle chevrolet in texas has 40 employees. they

t-bone is not going to be looking at an amtrak route, but are there options on the texas t-bone that might provide duel-rail with freight line, are or you looking at a different, all-new right of way. >> senator, the very fast track portion of the system, as mr. szabo pointed out, the system would have to have its own tracks. we think the whole system should be a separate track anyway. but as you described, in the urban corridors, the highway 290 corridor coming into houston we partner with the harris county toll authority, the yube pacific railroad, the houston met reauthority and the high speed rail and right of way and share a common corridor. the idea where it's appropriate to lay a track adjacent to freight railroads, and there's a number of places where that makes a lot of place, particularly in the urban areas where you have a limited right of way. as we move out, it depends on the demand we get from the freight side. we have found them to be reluctant to give up the right of way, claiming they need it for future development and it's theirs. it's a continuous problem. we're no

if we fight to get the $3.2 billion for texas where it needs to be. the underlying bill is an important bill. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from new york reserves his time. the gentleman from california. mr. dreier: i plan to close debate if the gentleman -- i yield to my friend. mr. arcuri: i have one more speaker. mr. dreier: i reserve. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves the balance of his time. the gentleman from new york. mr. arcuri: i yield four minutes to the the gentlewoman from ohio, ms. sutton. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman is recognized for four minutes. ms. sutton: thank you, mr. speaker. and i thank the gentleman from new york for his leadership on the rules committee and for the time. i rise today in support of the rule and the underlying bill. but as we prepare to send the war supplemental to president obama, i would be remiss not to express the deep concerns that i have about the bill not including an exit strategy for military operations in afghanistan. and while i support the supplemental

cuellar of texas. the chair: pursuant to house resolution 552, the gentleman from texas and a opposed will each control five minutes. the chair recognizes the gentleman from texas. mr. cuellar: thank you, mr. speaker, i yield myself such time as i may consume. the chair: the gentleman is recognized. mr. cuellar: i want to thank mr. mollohan on the leadership he offered on this bill. rise in support of my amendment to edge sure long-term taxpayer savings. it makes sure no light bulbs will be purchased that do not -- by federal funds that do not meet energy star standards. this amendment, -- this amendment will ensure the federal government makes a long-term investment on lowering costs on inefficient technology. energy star bulbs are proven to use electricity and last longer, saving money. regular light bulbs generate heat instead of light, energy star light bulbs provide the same light as a standard bulb but use 75% less energy and last eight to 12 times longer. i know this amendment was approved in th

doggett from texas and ms. jackson lee from texas. the speaker pro tempore: without objection, so ordered. under the speaker's announced policy of january 6, 2009 and under a previous order of the house, the following members are recognized for five minutes each. ms. woolsey of california. for what purpose does the gentleman from michigan rise? >> i ask unanimous consent to speak out of order for five minutes. without objection. the gentleman is recognized for five minutes. >> i rise today to celebrate the albanyan organization of southeast michigan and raise a concern they expressed to me. respect for people of diverse cultures has made our nation great. our national heritage reflects the cultural contributions of a wide range of ethnic groups. i'm fortunate to represent the 9th district of michigan, a district rich in religious and ethnic diversity and includes families from the ball can region. as a congressman of the 9th district, i have developed a strong bond with the community. this is a people that strongly values community se

king: i thank the gentleman from texas. and we were having discussions about things that were not heretofore unimagined a few months ago or even a few years ago. and as we transition into this discussion about guantanamo bay. the discussion will go on. if there are a few of them that could potentially be facing the death sentence. a few. i guess i should pass my request over to the gitmo closing czar and ask him how many are facing a death sentence. let's look at it in this fashion and that is, looks like -- they are going to close guantanamo bay. they will disburse these people. some of them are likely to be released in the free world. some into the united states of america. these are the worst of the worst. we have about a one out of seven residism rate. the least dangerous is the most accurate way to describe them. out of those 558, we see a rate where they turned around and attacked american people, one out of seven we know. i don't know what percentage we don't know. if one out of seven will come back and attack americ

the gentleman from texas. mr. barton: i want to yield one minute to the distinguished represent from -- representative from washington state, mr. hastings. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized for one minute. mr. hastings: i thank the gentleman for yielding this bill was written in a fantasy land where unemployment isn't reaching 10%, thousands haven't lost homes to foreclosure and millions haven't witnessed half their retirement savings disappear. by imposing this national energy tax and creating a massive new bureaucracy to regulate the entire economy this bill will drive up the cost of doing business in america, sending jobs overseas to china and india. nations that flat out refuse to reduce their own carbon emissions. we are told america must lead by example. are we to believe that after the government drives america's economy into the gutter, the rest of the world will do the same? america should not be the first lemming to jump off a cliff because nancy pelosi, al gore and others are convince

smith of texas. the chair: pursuant to house resolution 578, the gentleman from texas, mr. smith, and a member opposed each will control five minutes. the chair recognizes the gentleman from texas. mr. smith: before i yield to a colleague from california, i would first like to thank the gentleman from wisconsin, mr. obey, the chairman of the appropriations committee, the gentleman from washington, the subcommittee chairman, mr. dicks, and the ranking member of the subcommittee, the gentleman from idaho, mr. simpson, for their courtesies tonight. and i will yield one minute to the gentleman from california, mr. herger, both a colleague and a classmate and a member of the ways and means committee, one minute. the chair: the gentleman from california is recognized for one minute. mr. herger: madam chair, i thank the gentleman, my good friend from texas, for yielding time. i rise in strong support of this amendment. the district i represent in northern california contains nine national forests currently being overrun by illegal marijuana cultivation. this week two men opened fi

he lived in the nearby community of baytown, texas, with his family. the chief of police said he was not only an outstanding officer, but outstanding individual. he cared a great deal with his family, the people he worked with and, of course, the city of houston that he served. madam speaker, i spent 30 years at the courthouse in houston, texas, as a prosecutor and as a judge. i've known hundreds of houston police officers. they are the finest caliber and strongest of character. and officer canales was a rare breed in our culture who worry the badge to defend and protect the rest of us. officer canales died during surgery at the hospital where he and his family and other officers had gather. he was 42 years of age. this is a photograph of officer canales. he lives behind his wife, a 15-year-old son and a 17-year-old daughter. the officer was the first houston police department officer killed in the line of duty this year. the last time we had an officer killed was december 7 of last year. officer tim abernathy was killed by gunmen that ambushed him dur